Ember Rekali
Raised in the Twilight Praxeum, a student of the Detori, Ember Rekali changed his stars and became a Jedi along with his Master, Lyn-Char Beorht. A formative presence in the Jade Worlds, he travelled outside the known galaxy on the Kaloskagathia expedition and spent many years fighting the Cult of Shadow there. He returned to the civilized galaxy with his family, reached out the Force sects he'd known in his youth, and created the nondenominational Temple of the Current, which became the Ossus Jedi Temple. After the death of his wife, Brembla Kol, at the hands of Darius Malakai, Ember became a member of the Jedi Council and leader of the secret Jedi Shadows. History Asanis' Detori Born in the Anari Alliance, Ember Rekali (5 BBY) became aware of his Force-sensitivity at the age of twelve. At fourteen, he was recruited by the Detori Order and trained along with many other children, including Moroiniy Traverts, Darion Twin'Vo, and Brembla Kol. La-Reia Beorht was one of his teachers; he also knew Kishkumen. When the Sith Empire sent Iara Clane to conquer the Anari Alliance, the children were captured. They spent a substantial amount of time destroying SE containment facilities before Clane found a permanent solution: an isolated prison, cut off from all civilization. There, the young Detori formed factions and struggled for survival. His friendship with Brembla Kol became a close relationship, one that would help define his life. Beorht's Detori Several months into Ember's incarceration, Lyn-Char and La-Reia Beorht tracked down the teenage Detori and took them from Clane's custody. Reia, claiming a Nightsister breeding program was in effect, seduced Ember. Although Lyn sought to turn the young Detori to the Light Side of the Force, Lyn's own hatred for the area's Darksiders overwhelmed him, and Ember's friends became Lyn's weapons against the Sith. As Ember and his girlfriend approached the Light, Lyn slipped farther towards the Dark. He trained the couple in his own image. Eventually Ember began to question Lyn's suitability as a Jedi teacher, a conflict which came to a head when he and Lyn teamed up with Darion Twin'Vo to destroy a Dark Jedi convention at Tremondak Station. They convinced a Darksider to suicide-bomb the station, and all aboard were killed. Ember and Lyn tasted the resulting Dark Side nexus; repelled, they returned to Sabii and the Twilight Praxeum, where Lyn gathered his Detori to effect a change. Their efforts, however, had attracted the attention of rogue New Republic Admiral Cabbal Noir, who showed up in Sabii orbit with the Star Destroyer Lastwatch. His soldiers stormed the Twilight Praxeum, capturing or killing all of Beorht's Detori. Brembla's sister Imbris was killed. Ember, Lyn and Brembla were imprisoned onboard the Star Destroyer. Meanwhile, Iara Clane decided to deal with Noir's incursion. She ambushed and captured the Lastwatch. Noir, Brembla and others were believed killed. Ember risked his life to break the other Detori out of their cells, but all were recaptured by Clane. At this point, Ember's life was at the mercy of events beyond his knowledge or control. He had no way of knowing that Iara and Lyn had once been married, that Lyn's memory had been altered, that the Dark Master Velok was aboard the Lastwatch, or that Velok and Clane had saved the life of Brembla Kol. When Iara released Lyn and Ember, the heartbroken young Detori was baffled. Redemption Lyn and Ember formed a pact after their release, covenanting to seek the Light Side of the Force wholeheartedly. The Jedi Order was in disarray, so they sought out a chance to make amends. They followed a vision to the Outer Rim planet Bo'Riyo, days before an earthquake levelled a continent. In the ensuing months, Ember and Lyn dedicated themselves to the Jedi way. They set out to meet with the Jedi Council, but were not held accountable for their actions. Instead, in a time of crisis, they were sent to rescue a kidnapped Jedi Padawan, Ashin Varanin, who had been captured by the Cult of Shadow on Kothlis. Alongside Varanin, they faced the Dark Lord Kishkumen, packs of tuk'ata hounds, and powerful cultists. Varanin impressed Ember, and he began to feel affection for the older Padawan as he healed from Brembla Kol's apparent death. She did not return his feelings. Their next mission, with Varanin in tow, took them deep into the Unknown Regions, where they helped teach the first generation of Patriots. When Lyn chose to focus on training Varanin and liberating the Jade Worlds, he told Ember to return to the Order for the Jedi Trials. Ember chose to keep Lyn's blessing secret, out of a sense of unworthiness. He helped construct the Jedi Temple on Onderon, trained with Master Araya, and finally managed to salve his conscience. The Council never made an issue of his Dark Side past, and he resented how the Jedi let him get away with his previous crimes. He had to hold himself accountable for them. This began a career-long obsession with accountability and justice for lapsed Jedi. Some time into his training, he received a long-distance comm message from Brembla Kol, revealing that she had survived and joined Lyn in the Jade Worlds. Though he was on the verge of passing the Trials, Ember left Onderon immediately. The Jade Worlds Upon arriving in the Unknown Regions, Ember fell into a trap prepared by Kishkumen, who sought to turn Lyn's coterie against itself. Framed for an assault on Admiral Jita Hangetsu, with Shau'ghunate Guard blood on his hands, Ember found himself on the run. He learned that La-Reia Beorht had been captured on Armitage, and was being transferred to a facility designed to contain Force-users, and that Lyn was unaware of her presence. Ember made for Armitage on a stolen interceptor, looking to get Lyn's attention by attacking the prison. To contain the problem, Admiral Hangetsu sent Ashin Varanin, which suited Kishkumen's plan well. As the Cult of Shadow helped Reia escape from her prisoner transport, Ember engaged them in combat alongside the Shau'ghunate Guard. When Reia escaped, Ashin managed to track and kill her. Ember's name was cleared. He was reunited with Brembla Kol, whose survival at Sabii had come at the cost of much of her body: she was now a cyborg, but Ember's love was undimmed. Together they and Lyn returned to Onderon, leaving Ashin as an officer in the Jade Worlds. Education Ember spent the next few years travelling the galaxy with Brembla Kol, learning esoteric Force techniques from the Fallanassi and the Duinuogwuin. He continued his service as a Jedi in the process, protecting Force sects fro the Xen'Chi. Their gratitude aside, the Jal Shey would not teach a man with his history of violence. He found a temporary home with the Keetael and completed several Ube-tel before returning to his duty as a Jedi Knight. The artifacts associated with that warrior society's rites of passage are his most precious possessions. He also trained with a Warden of the Sky named Sorra Qail, who became a surrogate mother to him over a period of eight months, during which Ember worked as her copilot. Eventually, however, Ember returned to the Jade Worlds at Ashin Varanin's request. Return to the Jade Worlds Shortly after returning the the Jade Sector, Ember was captured by Darksiders who had just broken out of the prison on Armitage. During this captivity, he became friends with Kelen Adwar, apprentice of Siriss Cortann. They attempted to turn him back to the Dark Side using Sith poison. He resisted until a rescue party of Jedi and Tak Lords arrived, a group that included both Brembla and Ashin. Ember stepped up and faced Kishkumen alone. The Dark Lord, however, was not interested in victory: his objective was to secure Cortann and her followers. Cortann escaped and joined the Cult of Shadow, along with several others. Still fighting the poison, Ember took an injured Brembla to get medical help. Two weeks later, Ember proposed to Brembla and she accepted. They were married in a private ceremony by the Empress herself. They honeymooned on Kunli for a week, before setting out for Celesta and the second half of their honeymoon. Ember and his bride were making the dangerous trek down the nascent Emerald Way when they encountered a Cold Digester Vessel and were captured. Against overwhelming odds, they fought their way through the ship and disabled it, then called in the Jade Empire. The Kaloskagathia Mission Several weeks later, they decided to join the Kaloskagathia expedition and were subsequently trapped in an Extragalactic Star Cluster. Time ran more slowly in that strange region of space: the expedition would take eight years of subjective time while only six weeks passed in the galaxy. Ember and Brembla were forced to re-evaluate their lives in the context of the expedition. Ember, originally the mission's Jedi advisor, eventually joined the JEAF and became a lieutenant. He served with distinction as helmsman, and trained the onboard Patriots to a high level of competence. After the conclusion of the Xenovore War, Ember devoted himself to learning more about the Force and training Force-sensitive ex-refugees. Three years into the mission, Brembla gave birth to a son, Rach Kol-Rekali. Two years later, he was joined by a brother named Certh; after another two years, Brembla gave birth to a third son, Faran. She hadn't believed she could have children, and despite dissenting opinions she continued to serve while pregnant. Upon returning to the galaxy, Ember and Brembla spent their thirtieth birthdays at the same razorski resort where they had celebrated their honeymoon. They resigned their commissions in the JEAF and planned to return to the Jedi Order. Return to the Warp and the Sith.]] Before they could do so, however, Kishkumen and a small group from the Cult of Shadow made it through a JEAF blockade and a gap in the hyperspace disruption around the galaxy. The Cult forces reached the extragalactic star cluster, where time distortions would let them build an army. With only minutes to make their decision, Ember and Brembla pursued them; the hyperspace window closed behind them, trapping them inside the Warp again. The two ships landed on a habitable world and a protracted war began. One year after landfall, the last of the Kol-Rekali babies was born: a daughter named Benna. The Kol-Rekali clan spent the next fifteen years living off the land and fighting with Kishkumen's followers. Ember was forced to become a patriarch and an innovator, and to teach his children the finer points of using the Force. He and Kishkumen fought personally on several occasions. Shortly before the hyperspace window opened again, they engaged in a prolonged duel that ended in a draw. Both declared that it would not be the last; both were wrong, as Kishkumen died at the hands of Temap not long thereafter. The world where both had raised their progeny was colonized by the Jade Empire and dubbed Faran's Hold. Life as Normal Ember and his family returned to the galaxy. After twenty-three years away from it, he and Brembla were eager to show it to their children, who had never known anything but war on an uninhabited world. However, the cyborg Brembla's health had never fully returned since the destruction of the Lastwatch, and she agreed to remain in the Jade Empire to teach the Patriots part-time on Loki Station - a safer and less stressful life than that of a Jedi. Before he left for Onderon, Ember was approached by Velok and asked to participate in the 'reanimation' of his former Master. He hesitantly assented, and along with many other Masters he was duped into revealing much of his knowledge and giving a great deal of his power for the process. He would not learn for some time that 'Lyn' was a Croke impersonator. Shortly thereafter, Ember and his children returned to Onderon. While Rach and Benna set off on their own assignments, Ember took his two youngest sons and set out to contact members of various wandering or splintered Force traditions. In the process, they assisted Kali Skywalker in her hunt for Vahla pirates. s.]] By this point, Ember had been contacted by Farn Engel. The information broker presented them with an offer: full funding for the construction of a semi-Jedi temple that would serve as a waystation for wanderers like the Wardens of the Sky. The idea blossomed, and under Ember's direction it became the Temple of the Current, named for the surrounding river and for the 'White Current' - the Fallanassi name for the Force. The Temple complex was an ancient stone city on the edge of a waterfall, located in one of Ossus' few green areas. Thanks to Velok's funds, the city was cleaned and outfitted in record time. Only weeks after the Temple's establishment, disaster struck when Ashin Varanin brought her Padawan Temap to Ossus. Siriss Cortann, now a Dark Lord of the Cult of Shadow, had been assigned to kill Temap in revenge for Kishkumen's death and dose Ashin with Shadow Poison. Taking the two Jedi hostage, Cortann fulfilled her objectives, then covered her escape by sending three Terenarcs into the city. Casualties were high; before escaping, Cortann herself cut down Ember's youngest son, Faran. Over the months that followed, Ember threw himself into repairing and strengthening the Temple and its defenses, recruiting and inviting members of even more traditions, and spending time with his remaining family. The Temple of the Current became a new home for the Jedi Order: a Jedi Temple on Ossus. Ember was displeased when the Order put pressure on many of those Force traditions. The more questionable ones were forced out entirely, and many were inducted into the Jedi Order. Widower and Master When his wife, Brembla, died on Dathomir at the hands of Darius Malakai, Ember found himself struggling with the Dark Side of the Force as he hadn't for decades. He became more sarcastic and sombre, and felt a difference in his relationship with his children and associates. Never a social person, he drew in on himself until some at the Temple started to wonder how far he would go for revenge. He went on several short missions, usually with his children Certh and Benna. On returning, they reported that he functioned the same as ever. He passed leadership of the Temple fully to the incoming Jedi and the senior staff from the other Force traditions, and although he taught frequent classes it was without his usual vigor. He finally began to refer to himself as a Jedi Master, since his Padawan Rach had long been Knighted - one of the many possible criteria. When asked after the fact, he was heard to mention something about false modesty. He was with Benna onboard the ancient starship Voyager when it began its uncontrollable extragalactic odyssey. However, Brembla's drained and extradimensionally trapped spirit managed to warn him of the danger, and he and Benna found a way to escape the ship before it left the galaxy forever. Ember returned to Ossus and was tasked by Adam Sage to train, equip and lead the Jedi Shadows. Shortly thereafter, he was named a member of the Jedi Council. His connection to the Jade Empire was sorely strained when he faced off against both Skavi al'Kon and Team BLACKFRIAR in the Unknown Regions. Ultimately, he was able to turn the tables on the Sith and the Jade Empire commandos, and claimed a Rakatan power generator that drew electrical current from the Force. He installed it in the Ossus Temple. Powered by the ambient energies of the entire Jedi Order, the shield generators are impregnable. He faced off against Darth Kabal, deep in the Sith Empire, and personally destroyed a surface installation to rescue a kidnapped Jedi. In this and other matters, he worked across the aisle with the Shadow Poisoned Ashin Varanin and the Central Command Operatives. He still maintains useful contacts in the Sith Empire. Times of Trouble With his son Rach missing in action, Ember struggled to lead the Shadows, with the help of Boolon Murr. When Rach returned from captivity, having been Darius Malakai's student, the young Knight was unable to account for his actions, and the Council of Reconciliation took his Knighthood away. As his son Certh joined Jedi extremists and Jade Empire Patriots in making unauthorized assaults on the Sith Empire - and specifically on Ashin Varanin - Ember found himself further caught between his family and the Order. He was forced to discipline Certh, sending him to the Agricultural Corps. Meanwhile, Ember had a new recruit for the Shadows: his daughter Benna, who had lost her virginity to the unpredictable young Mikhail Sage, and who served as his bodyguard while he traveled the galaxy. Ember's gray hair grew more pronounced when the Council began aiming for a return to the New Republic, against the wishes of several Jedi. Skills The Force Ember's skills are numerous and esoteric, focused heavily on war-fighting. Thanks to Dathomiri-based training, he can communicate very well with animals. He is and has always been especially proficient at physical enhancement (improved by his training with a Warden of the Sky, Sorra Qail ), and due to his Dark Side past and his frequent duels with Kishkumen he is one of the great masters of Form V: Shien / Djem So. On the other hand, he hates violence and would far rather avoid it if at all possible, even if that means blackmail, threats, manipulation and so forth. The powerful, aggressive Djem So form is a match for his physical strength and the efficacy he brings to the job. From the Fallanassi, Ember learned the ways of the White Current, culminating in his ability to use Force Immersion. From the Duinuogwuin, he acquired the ability to navigate and sense direction unerringly, especially in deep space, and increased the range to which he could sense and communicate nonverbally. The Keetael turned him into a skilled hunter, a talent he honed over his family's time in the Warp. The combination of his Force skills result in a Jedi who is preternaturally skilled in hiding, hunting, infiltration and courier duties. At his best, he has been called a human cloaking device. One of his most unique abilities stems from his Nightsister training: he knows how to create a blood trail, and has marked his wife and children. His wife also used the Seventh Tome of Arguli to teach him the creation of Watchers. From frequent duels with Kishkumen, Ember became a master of the Force Affinity form. This understanding was broadened by Disaara Lon, who - although too weak to effectively use the technique herself - taught him Force Light so that he could remove the Taint left by the Skull Holocron in the catacombs under the Temple of the Current. It quickly became one of his favorite ways to use the Force, and he has been known to use it to erode constructs and projections of Sith magic. Other Ember was trained as a Detori commando, skilled in ranged weapons and capable of flying starfighters. He spent several years as the helmsman of the Kaloskagathia, doubling as a starfighter and shuttle pilot when necessary, and commanded a Xenovore Hunter Ship. He can speak Basic and at least one Dathomiri dialect; he can also understand Huttese, speaks some Rodian, and used to be fluent in Draethos. He is a capable construction worker, electrician and ship's mechanic. Category:Featured Article Category:Voyager Category:Jedi Order Characters Category:NPC